Food among main attractions at Festival of Nations
The annual St. Andrew the Apostle festival will be held from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday.
The aromas of homemade ravioli, sizzling gyros and fresh potato pancakes will once again fill the air this weekend as St. Andrew the Apostle Parish welcomes the community to one of the Mon Valley’s longest-running summer traditions.
Now in its 38th year, the Festival of Nations returns from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday at the parish’s Charleroi campus, bringing together food, faith and fellowship while celebrating the diverse ethnic traditions that helped shape the parish and the surrounding communities.
What began in 1988 as a modest parish fundraiser has grown into a regional attraction, drawing visitors from across Southwestern Pennsylvania who return each year for family recipes that have remained largely unchanged for decades.
The festival was founded by the late Fr. John Marcucci with a handful of food tables inside a church garage. As attendance increased, so did the menu, eventually expanding to feature dishes representing many of the ethnic backgrounds of parish families.
Today, volunteers spend weeks preparing thousands of homemade items before the first guest arrives.
Italian favorites remain among the festival’s biggest draws, with homemade meat ravioli topped with family-recipe marinara sauce, gnocchi, eggplant Parmesan and sausage sandwiches returning to the menu. Nearby, the Slovak booth will serve pierogies, stuffed cabbage and haluski, dishes that have become staples of the annual event.
Across the grounds, visitors can sample Greek classics, including gyros carved fresh from the spit, spanakopita, Greek lemonade and Santorini Sunrise spiked lemonade.
The Mexican booth offers green chile burritos served with rice and beans, birria tacos, nachos and margaritas, while the Hawaiian kitchen features Kalua pork sandwiches and pineapple or vanilla Dole Whip.
German favorites such as potato pancakes, pretzels with cheese, sauerkraut and beer round out the international menu. Traditional Ameri- can festival fare, including hot dogs, corn dogs, fries and cheese fries, ensures there is something for every appetite.
Those with a sweet tooth can stop by the parish bakery, where volunteers stock shelves with an assortment of homemade baked goods representing several ethnic traditions. Festival-goers can also enjoy funnel cake fries before heading home.
The celebration extends beyond the food.
Throughout the day, families can enjoy games of chance, basket raffles and music from DJ Cary Charles, creating the festive atmosphere that has become synonymous with the event.
Mass will be celebrated in the church at 4 p.m., offering parishioners and visitors an opportunity to pause from the festivities and gather in worship before returning to the celebration.
For many attendees, the Festival of Nations has become more than a fundraiser. It serves as an annual reunion where generations of volunteers work side by side in the kitchens while former residents return home to reconnect with family, friends and familiar flavors.
Although menus have evolved over the years, organizers have intentionally preserved the recipes that keep people coming back, making the festival as much about tradition as it is about introducing visitors to foods from around the world.
With seven ethnic food booths, homemade desserts, live entertainment and activities for all ages, Festival of Nations promises another full day of celebrating the cultures, heritage and community spirit that continue to define St. Andrew the Apostle Parish.
For Jeanie Alcorn, the parish secretary who has been part of the festival for more than two decades, the event is about much more than the food.
While visitors spend a day sampling dishes from around the world, volunteers have spent much of the summer preparing them.
Beginning in May and continuing through June and July, parishioners gather in the church kitchens to make everything by hand using recipes that have been passed down through generations.
“Everything is homemade,” Alcorn said. “We’ve been working all summer long, starting in May, June and July. The recipes come from our mothers and grandmothers, especially the Slovak recipes, and they’ve been passed down from generation to generation.”
For many of the volunteers, the weeks of preparation are as meaningful as the festival itself.
“I’ve worked here for more than 20 years, and it’s just wonderful,” Alcorn said. “We laugh, we work together and have so much fun. It’s a great community and just a wonderful parish.”
